The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was higher on Monday, ending the session 0.3 percent higher to 1,466.91.

The car and truck making sector did not have as good a day. Porsche and Volkswagen were both lower on indications that Porsche does not intend to attempt a complete takeover of VW, as had been rumored last week. VW dropped 0.1 percent to €80.71, while Porsche was 1.3 percent lower to €889. French carmakers Renault and Peugeot each fell 0.8 percent on the session, to €95.40 and €48.46 respectively. DaimlerChrysler bucked the trend in the sector and added 0.2 percent to €47.26 on upgrades from HVB and Deutsche Bank.

In the insurance sector, reinsures were up. Hannover Re added 0.2 percent to €33.08 and Munich Re gained 1.1 percent to €125.67. Swiss Re was 3.1 percent higher to SFr106.3 on the lowest number of claims made in ten years and healthy premium payments which generated high reserves.

Among stock exchanges, Deutsche Borse gained 2.5 percent to €126.00 on consolidation hopes after Nasdaq offered for the London Stock Exchange.

Aerospace and defense company Thales dropped 1.2 percent to €37.22 even though UBS upped its target share price from €35 to €39 but left its recommendation at “neutral”.

Credit Suisse added 0.2 percent to SFr80.80 even though UBS downgraded the investment bank from “add” to “hold”. Meanwhile, Greek banks were lower on the session due to their exposure to the Turkish banking sector. The declines came after the European Union turned up the pressure on Turkey to resolve its differences with Cyprus ahead of an entrance of Turkey into the EU. National Bank of Greece dropped 1 percent to €36.60, while Alpha Bank was 1.5 percent lower to €23.70 and EFG Eurobank fell 1.8 percent to €28.20.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was 1.1 percent higher on Monday, closing at 1,463.96, 14 percent higher than where it began the year. The day’s gains had much to do with rumors of bids and earnings reports that pleased investors.

The insurance sector did well on the day. Allianz added 2.8 percent to €147.90 on positive comments from several brokers in the wake of its quarterly report, issued last Thursday with results that were better than had been anticipated. Citigroup and Credit Suisse both raised their target share prices for the German insurer, to €170 and €171 respectively, while Deutsche Bank also upped its target to €171. Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and UBS also had good things to say.

Reinsurers were up after a quieter than expected hurricane season in the Caribbean. While Munich Re was expected to announce that its third quarter net profit had risen by nearly 50 percent, Hannover Re added 2.57 percent to €33.94 and Swiss Re was 2.71 percent higher to SFr106.

In the banking sector, Banca Monte Dei Paschi di Siena added 3.5 percent to €4.95 on rumors of a possible bid from ABN Amro even though the chairman of ABN’s Italian arm denied that he had called it a takeover target. ABN was 1.1 percent higher to €23.02.

Ferrovial was 2 percent higher to €75.55 after the Spanish construction company said that while it’s property division isn’t officially for sale, it is still looking at offers.

In Europe on Monday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 added 0.9 percent to 1,343.55 as oil prices declined and a ceasefire between Israel and Hizbollah went into effect. Also helping the advance was good performance in the insurance sector.

Despite falling prices, the oil sector saw gains after BP said that it could keep half of its Prudhoe Bay field in Alaska in production despite the necessity to replace corroded pipelines. Total was 0.7 percent higher to €53.05, while OMV added 1.1 percent to €45.40.

Airlines were mixed after the security level in Britain was lowered and some restrictions on carry-on luggage were lifted after last week’s terrorist warnings and arrests. Air France-KLM was up by 1.8 percent to €19.60, while Lufthansa gained 2 percent to €14.52. On the other hand, Ryanair dropped 1.2 percent to €7.150 on its complaints that BAA was not doing enough to get delayed flights off the ground.

The insurance sector as a whole was helped by a Citigroup upgrade from “neutral” to “positive”. Both Citigroup and Deutsche Bank named Allianz, Axa, and Zurich Financial as their favorites in the sector. On the comments, Allianz was 1.2 percent higher to €130.09, while Zurich Financial gained 1.5 percent to SFr282.00 and Axa advanced by 1.6 percent to €28.55. Reinsurers Munich Re and Swiss Re were also helped by the comments, adding 1.4 percent to €115.65 and 2 percent to SFr93.00 respectively.

An upgraded by Deutsche Bank from “hold” to “buy” helped steel maker ThyssenKrupp 2 percent higher to €26.61.

In Europe on Thursday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down by 0.6 percent to 1,383.20 as the day’s trading session closed. The oil and utilities sectors were down on lower oil prices, and the oil and mining sectors were affected by the news that China had raised interest rates unexpectedly. On the other hand, the insurance sector saw gains on the day.

UBS issued comments on several insurers and reinsurers, helping them higher. Axa received an upgrade from “neutral” to “buy, which helped it add 1.4 percent to €29.35. The recommendation on Allianz was raised from “reduce” to “neutral” and it gained 1.2 percent to €134.11. Among reinsurers, UBS reiterated its “buy” recommendations on Swiss Re and Hannover Re, and they each added 0.6 percent to SFr91.45 and €29.70 respectively. Munich Re retained its “neutral” rating and was up 1.2 percent to €113.85. Outside of the round of recommendations, Italian insurer Alleanza was up 2.8 percent to €9.757 on the news that a plan is in the works to return over €1 in excess cash to its shareholders.

Among oil companies, Statoil was down 3.1 percent to NKr203, while Neste Oil dropped 2.7 percent to €27.49 and Total declined by 1.2 percent to €222.20.

In the utilities sector, Finnish company Fortum was worst off, dropping 8.5 percent to €19.60, while Electricite de France lost 4.2 percent to €46.55, RWE was down 2.6 percent to €69.60, and Eon declined by 1.3 percent to €95.95.

Results were mixed in the chemicals sector. Bayer reported an 8.2 percent advance in operating earnings in the first quarter, adding 3.5 percent to €36.75 on the day. BASF, however, dropped 1.1 percent to €68.28.

The European equities markets were down on Thursday on weakness in several sectors despite strength in other areas, as well as on renewed worries about rising interest rates after the European Central Bank raised interest rates to 2.5 percent, up a quarter point.

The FTSE Eurofirst 300 was down 0.9 percent to 1,343.20.

There were some gains on the day due to mergers and acquisitions action and rumors. Swedish engineering group Atlas Copco was up 4.6 percent in its A shares to SKr205.00 on speculation that it had gotten a good price for its US-based construction equipment rental operation, Rental Service. In the biotechnology sector, NicOx gained 78 percent to €5.98 on the news that it has signed a deal worth up to €323 million with Pfizer, giving Pfizer exclusive rights to NicOx eye treatment technology.

The luxury goods sector was also up on the day, with LVMH up 3.7 percent to €79.35 on its report that operating profits had grown 16 percent over the full year, well above expectations. Elsewhere in the sector, Christian Dior gained 3.9 percent to €81.80, while Richemont was up 3.2 percent to SFr59.30.

Insurers were down, however. Swiss Re, for example, lost 4.7 percent to SFr89.50 on the announcement that its net profits had declined by 41.4 percent.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, Volkswagen dropped 3.7 percent to €55.42 over internal problems concerning the German automaker’s restructuring plans.

The telecommunications sector was mixed, with Deutsche Telekom up 1 percent to €13.63 on a good fourth-quarter earnings report and Greek telecom OTE up 1.7 percent to €18.18. France Telecom, however, was down 0.4 percent to €18.13.

In Europe on Friday the FTSE Eurofirst 300 closed at 1,207.44, a loss of 0.5 percent on the week.

Gains in the oil sector helped the equities market not lose any more than it did by balancing declines in the insurance sector due to fears of a new round of claims expected from victims of Hurricane Rita.

Despite a 2.7 percent decline on Friday due to a downgrade of Rita’s strength, Finnish oil refiner Neste Oil gained 11.5 percent for the week to end at €31.20. Neste reached a record high of €32.19 on Thursday.

In the automobile manufacturing sector, Volkswagen gained 13.1 percent on the week to close at €51.86 on Friday after going as high as €52.53 earlier in the day. Volkswagen’s strength was due partly to positive comment by brokers and partly to rumors that US billionaire Kirk Kerkorian is building a stake in the company much as he has done in General Motors.

In the insurance sector, Munich Re fell 2.5 percent over the week, mainly on rumors that it will soon issue a warning on profits. Elsewhere in the sector, Swiss Re dropped 2.5 percent to SFr81.25, Zurich Financial lost 2.4 percent to SFr217.70, and Axa fell 2.1 percent to €21.84.